Category Archives: Fair Isle Knitting

New design: “Sonoran Star” hat and mittens set

Posted on November 10, 2023 by twostrands

My new “Sonoran Star” hat and mittens set is a Fair Isle-style design sized for the average adult, knit in Jamieson’s of Shetland’s wonderful “Double Knitting” DK-weight Shetland wool. The knitting pattern PDF is available on both my MaryAnnStephens.com website … Continue reading →

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How I picked up stitches on my Wild Rose Vest

Posted on April 18, 2022 by twostrands

A delightful knitter who is working on my Wild Rose Vest wrote to me this morning wondering exactly how I like to pick up stitches on steeked garments, such as Wild Rose. Whether you’re working on one of my vest … Continue reading →

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2 new designs: Wild Rose Vest & Doggy Loves Kitty

Posted on February 9, 2022 by twostrands

“Wild Rose Vest” is a traditional Shetland wool vest / slipover with an updated bit of femininity. It’s knit in 12 colors of Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift. “Doggy Loves Kitty” is a baby blanket knit in Fair Isle technique with some … Continue reading →

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Morning Glory Hat & Fingerless Mittens Set

Posted on April 17, 2021 by twostrands

Just released my “Morning Glory” design: Details on my online yarn shop: knitting pattern pdf Jamieson’s of Shetland “Spindrift” 100% Shetland wool yarn pack The Morning Glory Set PDF is also available on Ravelry.

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25% off 20 of my patterns for colorwork KAL

Posted on February 3, 2021 by twostrands

Be sure to get the discount code from The Woolly Thistle KAL on Ravelry. You can use the KAL discount code either on my website or in my Ravelry store to get 25% off any of these 20 pattern pdfs, … Continue reading →

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Cosmos Chullo

Posted on October 28, 2020 by twostrands

My new “Cosmos Chullo” earflap hat knitting pattern pdf gives you a choice of two motifs for a super warm, quick-to-knit hat. The new MadTosh Triple Twist TML chunky / Aran weight superwash merino I used worked beautifully! You can … Continue reading →

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Centifolia Hat

Posted on May 16, 2020 by twostrands

I hope this finds you well and that, somehow, you’ve found bits of joy amidst the World’s sadness lately.  Today, I’ve released a new design, a nine-color extravaganza of a hat, to brighten my “lockdown”.  I hope it brightens your … Continue reading →

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How to get 25% off on Ravelry for ALL of my mitten PDFs through February 2020

Posted on February 1, 2020 by twostrands

I’m thrilled to be a participating designer in The Woolly Thistle’s 5th Annual Colorwork Mitten KAL on Ravelry.  I’m giving a 25% discount on all of my colorwork mitten knitting pattern PDFs all month long (Feb 2020) to anyone participating … Continue reading →

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Polar Pizazz + Sonoran Christmas

Posted on November 17, 2019 by twostrands

Here are a couple of particularly popular, recent highlights from my Instagram page:

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Timbers Hat, updated

Posted on October 5, 2019 by twostrands

My Timbers Hat design, first released in 2006, has always been a favorite. The worsted weight Dale yarn I used for it originally was discontinued years ago, so I’ve upped my game, updated the pattern to my now-usual format and reworked it in some wonderful Jamieson’s Shetland Heather Aran for a slightly denser, warmer, more durable hat.  Continue reading →

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Rose Arbor Hat

Posted on September 28, 2019 by twostrands

This hat was inspired by the upcoming “Rose City Yarn Crawl” in Portland, OR. The last couple of years,  Jamieson’s US distributor, Simply Shetland, a sponsor of the yarn crawl, asked me to donate some of my patterns to go … Continue reading →

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More on downloading my newly-free Hedgerow pattern

Posted on August 9, 2019 by twostrands

This morning, a message was left for me in the Ravelry comments for my newly-free Hedgerow design, making it clear that the author of the message did not like my solution of directing folks to my regular, for-sale pattern page … Continue reading →

Posted in copyright, Fair Isle Knitting, Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Canyon Wall Vest

Posted on May 11, 2019 by twostrands

My new “Canyon Wall Vest”, in four adult sizes, using nine colors of Spindrift, seventeen 25g balls in all.  Circularly knit in traditional Fair Isle style without any type of steek reinforcement.  Pattern includes not only the usual text and … Continue reading →

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Baby Elephant Blanket

Posted on November 3, 2018 by twostrands

I’m not too big on marketing.  I’d much rather be designing or knitting.  So, in case you just follow me here, through TwoStrands.com, and missed my lone post over the summer about moving my home, business and website… Here’s a … Continue reading →

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Kilim Pillow

Posted on June 9, 2018 by twostrands

Information on the Kilim Pillow design is now available through Mary Ann’s new website, MaryAnnStephens.com.  You can also find this pattern on Ravelry here. Unfortunately, Hubro was recently discontinued. The suggested gauge on Hubro’s ball band was 10 stitches to … Continue reading →

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Cholla Blossom Fingerless Mittens

Posted on May 23, 2018 by twostrands

My latest:

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Calling Scotland

Posted on January 5, 2018 by twostrands

“Calling Scotland” is my new Fair Isle style ladies’ hat and fingerless mittens set knitting design, knit in Jamieson’s of Shetland “Shetland Spindrift” jumper / fingering weight 100% Shetland wool yarn.  The PDF for the set is available from me, … Continue reading →

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Catalina Highway Pillow

Posted on December 20, 2017 by twostrands

  The inspiration for my Catalina Highway Pillow: Down in America’s Southwest, up in the northeast corner of Tucson, AZ, you’ll find the Catalina Highway. At its base in the Sonoran Desert, the landscape is punctuated by the lively reds … Continue reading →

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Christmas Ball FAQs

Posted on November 23, 2016 by twostrands

Here’s a compendium of info and links for all of the Christmas balls I’ve designed over the years: These are my five, free Christmas Ball knitting patterns, below… …and here is my Christmas Eve Collection, which is available for purchase … Continue reading →

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The Flourishing Scarf

Posted on November 4, 2016 by twostrands

UPDATE: This design is now available through Mary Ann’s new website, MaryAnnStephens.com.  You’ll find the pattern here.

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Baby’s 1st Fair Isle Cardi

Posted on April 12, 2016 by twostrands

It’s been an awfully long time since we’ve had a baby in the family.  Right now, our “baby” is my youngest son, who’s 16 already!  (Although he’d probably tell you the “baby” in our family is Gracie, below:) One of … Continue reading →

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Another Shetland Spindrift Shipment

Posted on January 26, 2016 by twostrands

Yippee, another dearly-awaited Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift shipment just waltzed through my door last night! A couple of  colors for some of my Fair Isle knitting kits have been missing in action the last few weeks.  If you’ve been wondering when … Continue reading →

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Top 10 Tips for Machine-sewn Steeks

Posted on December 21, 2015 by twostrands

UPDATE:  My post on steeking has been updated, formatted as a free, downloadable PDF and moved to the Technique page on my new website, MaryAnnStephens.com.

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Technique, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Ivy Headband

Posted on December 14, 2015 by twostrands

My new, warm, soft, stranded, braided, purpled, ivy-covered headband: I used five different shades of sport weight alpaca yarn.  You could use merino, superwash wool, cashmere – whatever type of DK / sport weight yarn knits to the right gauge, … Continue reading →

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The Christmas Eve Collection

Posted on December 6, 2015 by twostrands

The Christmas Eve Collection – Three new Christmas ball ornament designs, making new Christmas memories for little ones; bringing back sweet, sugarplum memories of our own: The $6 PDF, which includes instructions for all of the designs pictured, is available … Continue reading →

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Sagebrush Chullo

Posted on November 22, 2015 by twostrands

That’s my new Sagebrush Chullo, knit in seven shades of Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift fingering / jumper weight wool.  As I did with my old Polar Chullo design, I knit Sagebrush  at an extra warm and highly detailed gauge of 9 … Continue reading →

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Après Ski Wine Cozy

Posted on July 5, 2015 by twostrands

So, now I take requests.  Well, at least I took this one.  A particularly nice person who just so happens to be an absolutely wonderful knitter (funny how those two pop up together so often) asked me to design a … Continue reading →

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NY Nordic Hat

Posted on June 9, 2015 by twostrands

It’s not easy for an old knitter to capture the interest of a frenetic teenage boy. But, when a few bags of Dale Garn Freestyle came through my door, sporting unmistakably neon colors, my youngest son, Mikey, practically pounced on … Continue reading →

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Ladies’ “Spice Route Gloves” knitting kits

Posted on June 8, 2015 by twostrands

My ladies’ Spice Route Gloves Fair Isle knitting design, to be knit in Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift 100% Shetland wool yarn, is available as both a PDF and yarn packs in two different colorways through my online shop, MaryAnnStephens.com. PDF format … Continue reading →

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The Littlest Fisherman’s Hat

Posted on May 12, 2015 by twostrands

The inspiration for this hat is eighteen years old.  Back in March ’97, my now-hulking son Alex was a newborn.  Waaaaay too much of that spring was spent in a frustrating search for a sunhat for my bald-as-a-cueball little fellow.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

I Spy a Crocus

Posted on March 31, 2015 by twostrands

After the brutal winter we’ve endured, I got up out of bed this past Saturday morning – our last weekend in March – hoping that maybe, finally, we’d have a decent, spring-like weekend.  I had this silly notion that, “Oh, … Continue reading →

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Val’s Tiger Lily Jacket

Posted on March 26, 2015 by twostrands

Yesterday, I received a delightful email from another one of my immensely talented customers, Val.  It’s always a big thrill for me, to see the face behind the emails and phone calls.  Turns out, not only is Val bright, funny … Continue reading →

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Nordic Easter Egg knitting pattern

Posted on March 7, 2015 by twostrands

It sure has been one long, hard winter!  But, if you can believe it, we’re just two weeks away from spring. While Mother Nature is apparently still enthralled with winter, someone else has been busily focusing on the colorful, lively … Continue reading →

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Searching for Spring

Posted on February 20, 2015 by twostrands

The thermometer outside my kitchen window reported a bone-chilling two, count ’em,  two sorry degrees this morning.  So, I checked the weekend forecast, hoping for a sunny reprieve.  Snow and ice starting on Saturday afternoon, lasting into Sunday.  Not exactly … Continue reading →

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Chevron Fingerless Mittens – knitting kits, colorway ideas

Posted on February 13, 2015 by twostrands

We’ve just added a new kit page for my Chevron Fingerless Mittens.  You can select your three favorite Dale Alpakka colors from the three little pull-downs, right there on the kit page.  But, how do you choose three favorites shades?  … Continue reading →

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Interview on “How to become a Professional Knitter”

Posted on January 30, 2015 by twostrands

Robin Hunter recently interviewed me for her blog, “How to become a Professional Knitter”.  It’s up there now, right…over…HERE!

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Fair Isle “Gentle Hat” kits now online

Posted on January 29, 2015 by twostrands

  Ladies’ Fair Isle “Gentle Hat” kits are now available through my Kidsknits.com store site.  The kits come with my pattern (printed or emailed PDF, your choice) and seven different shades of delightful Dale Garn “Alpakka” (aka “Royal Alpakka”) 100% … Continue reading →

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Andrea’s Spice Route Gloves

Posted on January 20, 2015 by twostrands

I thought you’d like to see the lovely result, above, that my customer, Andrea, shared on Ravelry.  She knit my “Spice Route Gloves” design to a “T”, but in her own choice of colors.  As a designer, I think it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Knitted Hem Fine Points

Posted on January 6, 2015 by twostrands

Happy 2015!  I hope you all had a wonderful 2014 and are ready for an even-better 2015.  Now, it’s time to get to work on those resolutions! One promise that I made myself for 2015 was that I’d stop letting … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Technique, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Polar Chullo Shetland Spindrift Back in Stock

Posted on January 2, 2015 by twostrands

It’s baaaa-aaaack! Yippee, we just received yet another big shipment of wonderful Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift.  In addition to several colors for some new designs that are “in the works” (stay tuned) I ordered a large amount of the five popular-but-elusive … Continue reading →

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Gentle Hat

Posted on December 23, 2014 by twostrands

At 85 years old, most every day for almost three years now, my mother has driven nearly an hour each way over rough, winding, often-icy, upstate roads.  Her mission?  To spend as much precious time as possible trying to eek … Continue reading →

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Christmas Balls – A Brilliant Blocking Idea

Posted on December 17, 2014 by twostrands

I’m so lucky – I have the coolest, most talented customers!  Here’s a nifty blocking idea that one of my brilliant customers shared recently on Ravelry: She’s been using my free Christmas Balls patterns. Before she stuffs and closes up … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Technique | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

On Flat Charts for Round Shapes

Posted on December 2, 2014 by twostrands

This popular post on using flat charts to knit rounds shapes has been moved to the “Technique” section of Mary Ann’s new website, MaryAnnStephens.com.

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Free Charts, Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Technique | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Supernova Hat

Posted on October 13, 2014 by twostrands

Thirty, count ’em, thirty quick rounds of short repeat, short float bliss, then *poof*, you’re done.  Should fit most of the adults on your holiday list.  It seems a shame to knit just one, no? Knit yours in any two … Continue reading →

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Ode to Heilo

Posted on September 25, 2014 by twostrands

Going through some of my files this morning, it dawned on me that, oh my gosh, my Wintergarden Pullover is ten years old!  It’s been a hectic decade of adventures for Wintergarden – skiing, hiking, knitting, scrambling, chasing, knitting, lounging, … Continue reading →

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Shepherdess Cloche

Posted on September 24, 2014 by twostrands

My “Shepherdess Cloche” hat design, sized for adult females, knit in Dale Garn Monjita, Hegre and Heilo or Falk, now available as a knitting pattern, PDF or kit:   Dale Garn’s new, wonderfully soft, Persian-lamb-lookalike, Monjita, is held together with … Continue reading →

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Camissonia Mittens

Posted on September 22, 2014 by twostrands

My new “Camissonia Mittens“, sized to fit the average adult female hand.  Knit in standard Fair Isle knitting technique, then (optionally) embroidered, using Dale Garn Alpakka throughout: The knitting kit is available through my on-line yarn shop, Kidsknits.com.  It includes … Continue reading →

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Fair Isle Cowl in 60 Quick Luxury Knits

Posted on July 17, 2014 by twostrands

“60 Quick Luxury Knits” has just been released and it includes my reversible fair isle cowl, below: The publishers had me use Cascade’s “Venezia Sport” 70% merino wool, 30% mulberry silk sport weight yarn.  (In fact, all of the designs … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments